Brian Gage Writes Books

The Firebolt - Avail in Downtown Los Angeles!

2011-03-08T13:13:00.001-08:00

Greetings, Children of the Corn!

Great news - if you're one of my fellow downtown Los Angeles dwellers or "downtowners" as it were, you can pick up a Firebolt pack at both The Market on Spring or The 6th St. Market (most downtown locations will be carrying them by end of March).

For those Angelenos not in downtown LA or if you're in a different area of the US...Don't fret...We're hammering out a national distribution deal which should see us nationwide by late spring.

To paraphrase ZZ Top (which I do)..."We're bad...We're nationwide..."

Or as Patrick Swayze puts it, "Nobody puts Baby in a corner."

Believe it.

Firebrand Forever.

Facebook Tricked Me (Or Why is Someone in Indonesia Pretending to be Me?)

2011-02-18T17:22:00.000-08:00

Resistance is futile, I suppose.

We created a Facebook profile for Firebrand - avail here if you want to like or friend us or whatever it is you crazy kids do...

But the drag is I had to create a personal profile in order to make the Firebrand company page. So after years of resistance, Facebook has finally claimed me.

But the bigger drag is there is someone impersonating me on Facebook - this is not my profile. It's apparently someone in Indonesia pretending to be me. The question is, "Why?"

Can't they pick someone worthwhile to impersonate like Prince or something? I've contacted Facebook to have the profile removed, but so far no luck. This is the real me.

Anyway, after an initial shine to social media when it first started back with Friendster & Myspace, I really ended up disliking it...associating as the digital equivalent of Jams - everyone's doing it...and yes - i'm a child of the 80s...And yes - I also understand the value of social media in marketing which is why I finally caved...That said, I always hold newbie marketeers in great contempt when their entire marketing plan revolves around Facebook & Twitter...They are great tools for brand reach & customer interaction...Wretched for hard sales...Point is if your biz plan revolves around Facebook & Twitter as any sort of cornerstone for success - back to the drawing board, immediately.

So congrats, Facebook. You win.

And congratulations, Indonesian person pretending to be me, you win too. For now. But since I'm assimilating, maybe I should just friend the fake me - you know - really get to know the fake me...We can like each other's posts, LOL each other and all that stuff - total BFFs...

I can even shoot over friend requests I don't want to the fake Brian Gage. Or if someone says, "I friended you on Facebook" or "Why didn't you respond to my message?"

"Oh, yeah - sorry about that...There's a fake Brian Gage on Facebook. Nothing I can do."

Of course anyone who knows me will just assuming I'm being anti-social & not believe a word...

So until I defeat the fake Brian Gage, I guess I'll just post photos of my cats on Catbook so people know who the real me is and just assimilate as best I can.

So if you really want - why not befriend The Cat from Outer Space & Orbit (AKA Mr. Schnitters)?

Because who wouldn't want to be friends with my cats? The fake Brian Gage apparently.

And let it be known - if someone starts impersonating my beloved animals on Facebook, then it's gloves off, baby - gloves off!

Brand Diablo is now Firebrand!

2011-02-14T14:30:00.001-08:00

Hi, Everyone! Very excited to announce some big news from the business side of things. Brand Diablo is now officially Firebrand. Check out the new dandy logo!

When we first discovered potential trademark issues with Brand Diablo, we became a bit distressed about rebranding our fledgling/flagship brand, but in the end - we're much happier with the new name. Same basic look, just a cooler name in our opinion - one that is more in line with who we are as a company and what we stand for. And it's properly trademarked this time!

And for those of you interested, here is a photo of the griffin statue outside our office widow at night - it was the inspiration for the Firebrand logo & also my Batman complex:

So that's it. Check us out! Power to the rabble rousers, y'all...

Dang.

2011-02-07T00:21:00.000-08:00

Nice goin', Arianna. Impressive.

Huffington Post is my go-to news source, so I hope they stick to their editorial vision...

I'm just really pleased to see a new female media mogul with progressive values...

Me = Sad

2011-02-02T11:32:00.001-08:00

Here's the math...

Brand Diablo on TV!

2011-01-25T17:00:00.001-08:00

Hey all...anyone who's interested, here's a TV interview I did for ABC San Francisco on eCigs:

I think it turned out pretty well except for the blonde reporter at the end saying she could smell them and they made her dizzy...that's simply false...first, eCigs really are odorless and the vapor dissipates quickly...second - she had all ready left the set by the time we were using them...just another false knee jerk reactionary response.

the only other thing that bugs me is I need to start getting more rest before this type of stuff...looks like I just woke up from a nap! and they ain't lying about TV adding ten pounds. Here I thought I was in great shape. oy.

Whirlwind...

2011-01-22T12:48:00.000-08:00

It's been a whirlwind of activity round here lately...One of the things that has blindsided me most is having to rebrand Brand Diablo...That name will soon be a thing of the past due to issues I can't get into here...

Good news is that we have a new name for the company & it will be much better to cast a wider net. It should even be properly trademarked this time...In fact, after this next round of development we will own two relatively valuable trademarks in the electronic cigarette realm...

I also had the opportunity to do a TV interview for a San Francisco ABC affiliate and will post that once we have it. I think it went well, but was expecting more of a puff piece - it was not.

Lesson to any new business owners on the start-up front...Don't name-brand a single thing until you've spoken with a trademark lawyer. Mine is now my new best friend! And so is this.

Live and learn, my brothers & sisters!

Boston University on Electronic Cigarettes

2010-12-23T19:30:00.001-08:00

Thanks for proving what we all ready knew!

Here's my proof:

Boom!

2010-12-07T19:01:00.000-08:00

If you had any idea how fan-f'ing-tastic this is, you'd join me & my staff for free champagne & electronic cigarettes downtown tonight! Sorry - short notice, but the ruling just went down.

Celebration time...

Oh - and check out this killer review of Brand Diablo on eCig Savings!

2011 will be the year of The Diablo!

The Reviews are In!

2010-10-01T20:20:00.000-07:00

I love it when a plan comes together...We just received our very 1st review of Brand Diablo on Electronic Cigarette Nation today which is a pretty big deal for us as they deal with some really heavy hitters in the biz...We received 5 out of 5 stars, baby!

Seems all the time & $$ we sunk into product research, branding & packaging really paid off...

Here's the video review:

My favorite part of the review which is on the YouTube Channel blurb - "Brand Diablo and their products are truly epic."

Nice!

Full review here.

In other news...

2010-09-07T22:08:00.000-07:00

As the gossip mill has it, I'm apparently garnering the reputation as the Boo Radley and/or Howard Hughes of my building for my reclusive ways and apparent fear of germs & children...

Big ups to Micheal & Jill for keeping the myth alive!

Now this is something I can work with...I mean - I have a creepy griffin out my window, my light stays on to the wee hours of the night, there's a cryptic sign on my door warning visitors not to disturb me unless they absolutely have an appointment, & the only person ever seen leaving or entering my PH is my cleaning lady...

if only i could leak it that I have two pure-bred cats named after interstellar objects who use the toilet instead of a litter box then it would be a home run.

now all i have to do is actually go insane and boom! nailed it.

Brand Diablo - Electronic Cigarettes

2010-09-02T20:07:00.001-07:00

Hello, everyone!

I wanted to invite you to check out my latest venture! Brand Diablo - Electronic Cigarettes (or ENVs) as we call them...

If you've been reading this blog, you'll know that I gave up smoking tobacco forever in early March having found this incredible alternative. I haven't touched a cigarette in over 150 days now and will never go back thanks to this amazing invention.

I loved them so much due to the amazing affect they've had on my life that I started my own company & it is now my mission in life to alert as many smokers as possible to this incredible alternative to tobacco.

As a reformed smoker, I know each and every one of us longs to quit & likely have tried patches, gums - you name it - with no success. I used to do the patch and would still smoke. Anyway, once I discovered the electronic cigarette, I never picked up a tobacco smoke again.

The benefits of switching are incredible. No more terrible odor, no more bad breath - no more coughing. You still get your nicotine fix, but none of the other terrible chemicals that are in cigarettes.

There has been a lot of bad press lately over eCigs thanks to the FDA's wretched spin campaign against them. I use these things myself and would encourage any smoker to switch. The FDA is merely acting as a puppet organization for big tobacco & big pharma who are seething over electronic cigarettes as they don't have their thumb in the pot.

I'll leave the decision up to you, but if you are in the market for an amazing tobacco alternative - or know someone who is, I invite you to try out Brand Diablo - the only eCigs with moxie!

Wow - I never realized I could sound like such an infomercial...

Thanks for reading. Happy vaping!

Ludovico, Inc.

2010-07-23T13:07:00.000-07:00

I am now the proud owner of Ludovico, Inc.

Signed off on the paperwork today.

What is Lucovico, Inc., you ask? Well, you'll just have to wait until September or so to find out...It may end up being short lived in the US depending upon our pals @ the FDA...but that's all I can say...

The irony of this situation is not lost on me. For a guy who's body of work essentially is writing about how much he hates CEOs & corporations - to then own two corporations & be CEO of both is well...About as ironic as 10,000 spoons and all you need is a knife. Thanks Alanis.

Anyway, when I wrote Snark Inc. I thought I was writing about me as the main character...Well, turns out I was - only in the form of the serpentine boss. Although, change comes from within. And believe me - we're much better off with a joker like me running businesses than say a Dick Cheney.

As deep down, I'm not pure evil. Only semi-evil. Semi-sweet evil, that is.

I had no idea when I started down this road almost two years ago that any of this would take off. Let alone being in the position to launch a second business. Will it fly? No idea. I'm just going to keep throwing stuff at the wall and see what sticks.

I will say that I've found running my own businesses to be amply more rewarding than writing books. I still intend to write. I'm just not miserable anymore about the state of my flagging career as an author. In fact, now it's rather a cute side note to my personality...And that's just where I like it.

85 Days, People!

2010-07-12T14:12:00.003-07:00

Off the tobacco train for 85 days and counting...

Cured at last!

What really knocks me out is not so much the $$ figure...but how many cigs i would have smoked in the time frame...Over 2,500 cigarettes? Outrageous.

My lungs must still be harboring a grudge against me. I hope they don't want a divorce. I'm pretty committed to this relationship, so I hope they'll give me another chance...

I'm worth it. I swear, lungs!

Thanks, Ecigs!

2010-05-26T21:36:00.000-07:00

So before I accidentally deleted my last round of posts, I wrote about purchasing an electronic cigarette which as far as I'm concerned is the invention of the century.

By-products are essentially water vapor & nicotine - no odor, no tar, no 4,000 other chemicals.

Anyway, it helped me quit smoking essentially over night. Can't believe how amazing the effects have been on my life. It's like I awoke from a bad zombie dream as I was truly enslaved by cigarettes...

I found this cool banner that tracks how many days I haven't smoked a tobacco cigarette & also the $$ savings...At this rate, I plan to take the $$ saved at the end of the year and finally visit St. Petersburg & Moscow - which I've been compelled to do thanks to the subject matter of my latest novel...

Also, I plan to keep this honest & will remove the banner if fall off the wagon...Unless for some reason the FDA bans the device which they're erroneously trying to do - then I believe my days of smoking are finally behind me!

The most obvious effect I noticed right away was just how damn stinky tobacco smokes are. As a smoker - you fail to notice this. Even if I'm walking outside & someone is smoking on the sidewalk - the stench really puts me off from a distance...

So I'd also like to officially apologize to any of my friends and family who had to put up with my ashtray-stinkin' ass over the years...